I love this story, click here.

Listen to this.

My sister Lydia has Downs Syndrome and so this story is unavoidably personal for me. I did think about making her the topic of my blog, but its hard enough taking criticism for my writing on Obama let alone my own sibling.

Eating my hat

Don't click here.

Hmm yes well, ah, bugger.

Anyway I'm delighted.

Skags

I've just had my first real experience of a crime.

I live in a London basement flat in a good bit of a 'bad area.' Apparently there is a nearby bail house. What's that I ask the police? Oh could I be anymore sheltered?

Crime statistics, the police, skags, I LIVE IN DEVON, what is this tomfoolery you speak of?

I'm sat on my bed, quietly deciding if I should sell my Mulberry bag on ebay for a couple of hundred pounds so I can afford a Mui Mui Tassel bag when outside my very window a similar conundrum is taking place. Namely, shall I break into this house so that I can get my next fix of heroin?

I am amazed at my senses really, my ears were immediately alerted to an alien sound outside he french doors in my bedroom. The quiet movement of something unnatural, the feel of a hand against the wall and a firm push at the door, once and then twice.

I have to whole heartedly commend my housemate on his immediate action in calling the police, no messing about. 'THAT'S IT, I'VE HAD ENOUGH!'

And the police were amazing; for all the stick the Met get in London for various terrorist cock ups, the assistance I received in this house, on this night (Obama has infiltrated my mind) has made me feel safe and protected.

Four police personnel arrived within minutes of us dialing 999, I thought they would think we were wasting their time, er it's London, we've got actual stabbings to deal with love, but they were on the ball and fierce about reassuring us.

Our neighbours have a wendy house for their children to play in, and that was the first place the police looked for the intruder before bolting across the gardens. Next time they said they would bring their sniffer dogs.

Fuck; next time?!

Obama and the Puppy

Puppy over Policy?

When Barack Obama promised his daughters Sasha and Malia a new puppy little did he know that in some circles the new first puppy is more important than Obama's policies. 

For example you can now vote on youtube for the puppy you feel should be in the White House, bearing in mind that the first family do have some special requirements. 

Speaking to the BBC Barack Obama has specified that he would like a resuce dog, 'a mut, like me' while his daughter 'Malia is allergic and so the dog has to be hypoallergenic.'

Playing the waiting game

Malia and Sasha are going to have to wait until January 20th for their puppy, as their Mum, Michelle Obama has said it wouldn't be fair to get the puppy until the big move to the White House. 

It's not just Obama's daughters who will have to wait, if reports about Obama's secretary of state are to be believed Hillary Clinton will be waiting to be appointed come January. 

Clinton and Obama on the same team?

This cannot be true. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama hate each other more than Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston hate each other. As if he will choose her. 

All this speculation is the media equivalent of selling stories during the silly season months of July and August. 

Trawling the internet there is no definitive quote from Barack Obama on who he will approach to be his Secretary of State. 

NBC and The Washington Post have reported that Mrs Clinton was under consideration for the top US diplomatic position because she flew to Mr Obama's hometown of Chicago for 'personal business.'

Neither her aides or his aides would comment on the nature of the visit which took part behind closed doors in his Chicago office. 

In fact, the only person to make any sort of official statement would be ex President Bill Clinton. 

Can you offer any clarity Bill?

Speaking at an economic conference in Kuwait, Bill Clinton said, 

"If he (Obama) decided to ask her and they did it together, I think she'll be really great as a secretary of state." 

"She worked very hard for his election after the primary fight with him, and so did I, and we were very glad that he won and we have a lot of confidence that he can do a good job.

"But she didn't do what she did with the hope or expectation of getting any kind of job offer, much less having this discussed."

"The truth is I don't know," he said. 

That makes two of us then Bill.

EXCLUSIVE - OBAMA'S ELECTION PHOTOS

Some very intimate photos from election night.

You've got to love Sarah Palin

'Off the record' becomes public...



1. She refused help?! WHAT?
2. Republicans are still looking for her to stand in 2012? I hope I'm dead.
3. Knowledgability?! Translation? Fox News is bollocks.

Bending The Arc of History

Change has now come to America

What does 'change' mean? Is it pure rhetoric? Have people voted for a man on the basis that he is a great orator with unbelievable charisma?

Don't be ridiculous.

At the most basic level 'change' means a rejection of Republican policies, of George W Bush's eight years in presidency.

George Bush Junior is the most unpopular President EVER. He has led the American people to vote left of centre they were so unhappy with the status quo.

This is a rejection of Bush's reign of horror (they did elect him a second time...you can't really gloss over that), this is a victory for democracy.

Obama's campaign was spot on; emphasize the change and you have appealed to the 80% of Americans who felt the USA had lost it's bearings.

Obama faces a country on its knees and a Presidency which history may not treat kindly. I hope it doesn't beat him.

One man can't withdraw peacefully from Iraq, bring democracy to Afghanistan, make healthcare more affordable and avaliable AND rescuce the economy but he is the best of America and we are ready for him.

President Obama

So he's done it, 'the history man,' he's bring 'change'. Sorry I haven't updated, I'm pulling my hair out trying to find words that express how I feel about it without using huge cliches.

His acceptance speech was stupendous, bending the 'arc of history,' awesome, inspiring, how a president should be.

In one single moment America has been transformed, and Obama has done that. How and why?

1. He is the first black president in the White House. (Yeah he is, oh you knew...oh ok) How far away from that is Britain? We barely have any chief execs who are black.
2. His foreign policy, (ending the war in Iraq etc) has instantly dissolved much of the animosity which has built up over the last eight years.
3. His blinding charisma moves everyone.

I hardly remember Bill Clinton and so in my mind, America has always been associated with George Bush Junior. It has been such a delight to watch America transform from the narrow minded isolationists George Bush typified to the progressive superstars Barack Obama embodies.

Maya Angeou's reaction:

At a time where language is banal and insignificant it takes true talent to be able to comment along side history. Maya Angelou sincerely expresses everything I want to say. Watch it here.

Asked, 'Who were you thinking about while watching the election?' She said, 'I was thinking of all of us before...I am so filled with pride for my country..what do you say we are growing up...I'm so grateful!

'Look at our souls, look at our hearts, we have elected a black man to talk for us'

She described Obama as 'intelligent...he has common sense which is I'm sorry to say is most uncommon...he is inclusive as opposed to exclusive..he is the President of the bigots.'

Breaking News: Barack Obama's Grandmother Has Died

Barack Obama's Grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, 86 has lost her battle with cancer.

Barack Obama recieved this news before a rally at Charlotte, North Carolina and has made this statement with his sister Maya Soetoro-Ng.

"She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength, and humility.

"She was the person who encouraged and allowed us to take chances.

"She was proud of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren and left this world with the knowledge that her impact on all of us was meaningful and enduring. Our debt to her is beyond measure."

When Barack Obama chose to take time out from his campaign to fly to Hawaii it went unsaid that his Grandmother didn't have long to live.

This makes it no less tragic. The woman who raised Barack Obama will never see his presidential campaign through to the very end.

Can he be stopped?

Both John McCain aka 'Mac' or 'Rocky' and Barack Obama have been today fighting it out for votes.

Obama is on the offence, targetting states that George Bush won in 2004, such as North Carolina, Virginia or Florida.

McCain, traiing in every poll is gunning for votes in a marathon of state visits namely Florida, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Indiana, New Mexico, Arizona and Nevada.

Both presidential candidates are urging everyone to get out and vote.

Who will be the 44th president of the United States, winning the magic number of 270 Electoral College Votes?

How on earth are you supposed to keep up?

To be honest I feel swamped with information about Obama and I'm not even in America. Check out The Times' 'state by state guide' by clicking here.

Are we in an 'American age of Transformation'?

Obama has said, 'I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views.'

Will eight years of the Bush regime have meant that Americans join to vote for Obama in hope of 'change.' My guess is that is probably isn't just Colin Powell who has swapped camps, because 'We are better people than the last eight years.'

Four Days To Go!

I'm trying to stay calm. It's very difficult, only four days! Tuesday is going to be an absolute nightmare. I can't possibly sleep. I want to be able to remember exactly how I felt, the night a black candidate nearly / became president. It isn't all 'signed, sealed, delivered' yet.

The race tightens ( we knew it would)

No polls in the USA put McCain ahead of Obama currently, but the swing states are too close to call.

McCain's camp have issued a memo this week saying, 'All signs say that we are headed to an election that may easily be too close to call.'

Gains for Obama among young and black people may be rivalled by McCain's appeal to rural and less educated voters.

Obama has, in the last few days tried to offest this possibility in bringing in his two biggest guns.

1. A 30 minute infomerical which delayed the holy grail of American culture.




The advert drew in over 26 million viewers and is a mark of his relentless campaign up until Tuesday where he has chosen to make full use of his campaign's bucket of cash.

2. Bill Clinton.

Obama's Reaction to Death Threat

Is this the state of things to come? If Obama's presidency is to become dominated by racism, what sort of president will he be allowed to become? The video below, sheds light on some real fears of Ohio citizens concerning Barack Obama's intentions as president.

The 'black' are going to take over?! By 2040, white people will be in the minority in America.

Frankly, he's got a lot to do if he wins on Tuesday without having to worry about being assassinated. I'm glad he has confidence in the Secret Service, and it does reassure me that in every picture he is surrounded by six or seven men in dark sunglasses.

As an Obama supporter I am under no illusion that he is actually, 'Superman.' For any president this will be very tough.

1. The US currently faces an immediate financial crisis.

2. The question of a sustainable source of oil. America's paradox of relying on the Middle East as a source of oil, and at the same time viewing it as a security threat.

3. Taliban and al - Qaeda insurgents are thriving in Afghanistan. Will the 'War on Terror' be rendered a futile exercise? How can it end? Iraq remains volatile and unstable.

Back to the point...

Sarah Palin's Clothes (groan)

How much has the Republican campaign spent on Sarah Palin's outfits? WHO CARES? We get it, its clear, she's totally incapable of running America and was an appalling choice on behalf of McCain.

So she has allegedly spent '$150, 000' on clothes. Surely that's politics!? You've got to look good. Remember the public rinsing Boris Johnson received from the press when he didn't button up his jacket at the Beijing Olympics? First impressions count.

This story wouldn't have been such a big deal if Palin had had the first clue as to what she was talking about. The fact that she was an 'attractive face in politics' and a 'hockey Mom' are the only cards she had to play.

Obama didn't need to reiterate why he was going to visit his Grandmother in Hawaii, it was all unsaid. It was private.

Her initial allure is over, but she has been a terrific bonus for the media in the 2008 election. It was good without her, now its sublime.

Trevor McDonald's American Road Trip

Personally I think Sir Trevor has nailed it, in eight days time America will vote for the economy or for racism. Read the whole article here.

McDonald cites an opinion poll by the New York Times and CBS News which found that third of voters said they knew someone who would not vote for Obama because he is black. Nobody is prepared to be openly racist, and so the colour of Obama's skin is the proverbial 'elephant in the room.'

Obama's alter ego, 'Barack Hussien Osama the Muslim' is still prevalent. And not just through spiteful yet clever Republican campaigning, but as a desperate excuse for racism.

An aside...

McCain has realised that dragging Obama's name through the mud has not helped him gain anymore votes. I'm rather sorry for that, as it was quite entertaining. The Daily Telegraph notes that McCain is frustrated at his campaign aides for giving up the fight too soon, here he is looking angry, oooh ANGRY McCain, (note the "Rocky" music, where was the montage?!) compared to calm McCain...all in the space of a couple of days.

I'm being facetious of course, even with the polls talking of a 'landslide victory' the race will be very very close. The media can't write McCain off, while the educated elite indicate Obama's lead in the polls, the voters are regular Americans and you cannot predict how they will all vote. Just look at the last eight years.

Anyway Guy Ritchie and Madonna are keeping me entertained with their own mud slinging circus. Ritchie has said, 'cuddling up to Madonna was like cuddling up to a piece of gristle.' Shame...

Mum, Heroin and Me

On Wednesday I went to Kingston Crown Court, and watched for three hours as defendants in the dock were to be granted bail or not and at what date they would appear in front of a crown court. One particular case made a deep impression on me.

The case was in reference to a young girl accused of shop lifting. The prosecution determined that the girl was a 'known heroin addict' and a 'court resident.'

Her appearance was pitiful, she was dressed in a grey tracksuit, her hair, unwashed and scraped back. She listened confused to the prosecution, trying to deny any involvement, almost as if it wasn't her they were talking about.

Before she came out, the court usher who has seen this charade a thousand times muttered, 'any moment now and she'll start crying.'

Part of me wanted to help this girl and to release her from her addiction, but having had a close relative experience alcohol addiction, I knew that more often than not, becoming personally involved is no help at all. 'Getting clean' can only be achieved with the individual's own determination.

Just look at Kate McKenzie. Her daughter Hannah has been addicted to heroin for five years. In a film last night for Channel 4, 'Mum, Heroin and Me' Jane Treay sought to depict an unhappy child who in an attempt to feel better had stumbled into alcohol and heroin addiction.

Everything that mother and daughter did together, coffee, lunch, birthday treats was sadly marred with Hannah's addiction.

Kate and her husband had separated during the course of this film over the couple's disagreement on how to cope with Hannah's addiction. Her father believed in the 'tough love' principle, but Kate could not cut Hannah out of her life, not knowing if she was safe.

Kate even took solace in the fact that Hannah would not be alone on the streets looking for drugs as she would be with her boyfriend Ricky who was also an addict.

The film captured excellently the futile squalor that heroin addicts live in. It juxtaposed Hannah's former 'middle class' life with her current state of happily 'bumbling along the bottom.'

The film opened with a scene in a block of flats. On the stone ground Hannah and Ricky were trying to inject themselves. There was an intense silence as all they could worry about was getting the heroin inside them. As the camera panned down we were able to see another addict, through the stairwell 'cooking up' alone on the ground.

Sat on a park bench together, Kate asked Ricky, "What have we got to do today?" Ricky replied, "Nothing really." Kate then replied, "I don't feel too bad today, I just need one more hit before bed time."

At the end of the film we were told that Hannah had left for a rehab clinic in South Africa for five months, in an effort to free herself from heroin's enslavement.

The devastation heroin had caused on family was unimaginable. The film captured the truth of heroin addiction, and it was 'gritty and grimy with precious little hope of salvation.'

Toot

Obama is to take time out from the campaign trail to visit his sick Grandmother in Hawaii. He has said that she was the woman who 'poured everything she had into him.' I hope 'Toot' survives to see her Grandson sworn in, what a bitter sweet victory it will be for Obama if she doesn't.

Powell and Palin

So Palin is suffering.
Saturday Night Live is crucifying her.
The sketches themselves have been drawing in an audience of 8.3 million, and 9.3 million online. For Tiny Fey the mimicry has been all too easy, a 'hockey Mom,' an 'outsider.' But hey, she was brave, and desperate to appear on the show.

Perhaps it is Tina Fey who has weekly publicised how ill equipped for presidency Palin is, but it has been the woman herself who has torpedoed her own public image in a series of terrible interviews. See here.

And now, Colin Powell, the only man to walk out of the Bush presidency with some decency intact* agrees. He condemned McCain for attacking Obama's past, emphasising a link with the terrorist Bill Ayres. Powell said that Obama was a 'transformational figure...a new generation coming' where McCain was 'narrow and unsure.'

*Times Online (See link for Colin Powell)

Red Rocks

What am I going to do with this blog if McCain wins? Maybe I could just go back to his house in Sedona, Arizona seeing as he won't be needing it. I need some vortex healing.

Who is Barack Obama?

Superman

Fickle Times

I'm scared of becoming fickle. It's very hard to not be influenced by the constant press and spin surrounding the American Election - they've been at it since February for god's sake! The constant reinvention of each candidate, the magnifying of the smallest development or change; I find myself so engrossed in it, but I wonder if it only blinds me from seeing the truth. Every word, camera angle or smile is cultivated, just look at Sarah Palin.

For example today, it seems as if the press have suddenly turned on Obama again. When McCain looked strong five weeks ago, Obama was the unseeded underdog; a role he seemed to relish. The press foresaw a depressing vision of isolated America, turning it on itself, continuing the Bush administration.

Cut to five weeks later, and Obama is riding high on the back of the economic crisis. McCain is presented as alienated from Bush, as the most 'democratic' Republican President America could ever hope for and Obama is rendered with a double page spread in the Times examining his 'terrorist filled past.'

This evaluation is at least what my tutors at Westminster would be proud of. A constant analysis and criticism of the media is required for a distinction I'm sure.

So the power of the press can change the outcome of an election? Of course, turning to British politics as an example, when Jonathan Aitken was revealed to be accepting gifts from a Saudi business man, his political career was ruined by the Guardian and he failed to become the Prime Minister.

Or perhaps Obama is leading in the polls because of his relentless campaigning? Let's compare the facts:

1. Barack Obama and Joe Biden have made 95 appearances in the battleground states over the past five weeks. John McCain and Sarah Palin have made only 55.

2. Ohio and Pennsylvania have received 14 visits each from the Democrats' 'big Three' compared with only nine each from the Republicans.'

Ignorant America

It’s the definition of frustrating when, given that the newly elected President will be the most powerful man in the world, and his decisions ripple across the world, my views can't be translated into votes. Especially when those privileged enough to be American don’t even bother to get their facts right. To quote an American from Nashville, Tennessee, ‘Even though Obama is from Illinois, and I’m from Illinois I can’t vote for him because he is a Muslim.’

However my knowledge of Washington, I'm ashamed to say a bit more 'Sarah Palin' and a bit less 'Joe Biden' and initialising a 'world vote' isn't something I want to encourage.

Obama is suffering then from the proliferation of false rumours. The voting American public it seems, believe what they want to believe. Although not explicit Obama’s race promotes him as being different, an outsider, un-American. Channel 4 last night used statistics that Obama would be six points ahead if he was white. Obama’s lack of identification with the people who worship ‘god and guns’ could be his downfall.

It is preposterous to me that McCain is seen as intrinsically American because he fought for his country. While this in itself is admirable I’ll admit, it in no way qualifies him as a great 21st century leader. It is war and greed that has rendered America isolated and in chaos. War and greed; how many cars does McCain have? Thirteen. How many houses? Sorry I’ll just call his people to find out.

Eight years ago Obama was unable to attend the Democratic Convention in L.A because his car was towed when he was unable to keep up the payments on it. And this man doesn’t know the struggles of the American people? Please.

It is difficult not to surrender to the mud slinging that seems to be so familiar in American politics, perhaps it is less obvious within the British parties, or perhaps our politics is boring. Obama needs to defend himself, but at the same time rise above the negativity to channel a crystallised transparent image of an educated American who is able to represent his country nationally and internationally.

McCain in Pain

I’ve decided, even though I’m a relative novice to American politics that it is far too interesting to ignore. It’s the first part of the newspaper I turn to, plus I was hooked on it when I was out in the States.

Recently I was in despair after Sarah Palin, “Miss September” looked to sink Obama’s campaign, and I wasn’t the only one to lose the faith; my house mate has bet £200 against Obama becoming President. Ha! More fool him because the tide has turned.

One month to go…

Obama must thank his lucky stars for the financial crisis and more specifically the messy $700 billion bailout. The chaos George Bush will leave the American economy in has nicely slurred McCain’s Campaign and damaged the Republican Party as a whole. McCain can no longer rely on the all American ‘I fought in ‘nam nonsense' he has propagated for so long.

As Michael Tomasky of the Guardian wrote yesterday, ‘the Republicans can’t win on substance. Most of their positions are too unpopular. They know this, and this is why they lie.’

The Republican Strategy 2008:

1. Be vague on all policies. Polls have indicated the swing state of Florida turning Democratic due to McCain looking to tax healthcare and privatise social security; policies which are alienating older Floridians from the Republican Party.
2. Stain Obama’s name as much as possible by associating him with the terrorist Bill Ayers.
3. Continue to report how much al-Quaida want Obama to win in November.
4. Continue winking, to identify as much as possible with empty symbolism such as ‘Joe Six-pack,’ and being a ‘hockey Mom.’

The morphing of the American Dream…

Who can afford a yacht, three kids at college and an annual family skiing holiday with such an uncertain financial economy? Hasn’t the American Dream become having a peaceful nights sleep, safe in the knowledge that your money is secure and you are debt free? McCain places emphasis not on reassuring the American population of his commitment to a better economy but on tearing the Democratic campaign down, rendering his own campaign empty. Obama and Biden merely have to remain substantive and strong in their policies to win…surely…?

Art Today

Reading the Times yesterday I was forlorn to hear that Tony Hart, the man who everyone remember as instilling the artist in each of us as a young child is no longer able to draw, having suffered a series of strokes.

I remembered the innocence of his programme, and how much I used to look forward to Morph, his little plasticine friend coming on the screen. His use of cheap art materials such as lentils and rice meant his art was accessible to all, so 'credit crunch' friendly. His drawings are of a stark contrast to the final Turner Prize exhibits.

I wonder what he would make of a woman alone on a toilet bowl with some porridge at her feet. I rather like Cathy Wilkes' work, a frantic woman in a mess, all very Tracy Emin, but it makes me feel like I'm less of a mess myself. I'm dressed at least.

All About America

I've just watched the footage of the planes crashing into the twin towers on September 11th. I remember it live, on the BBC, coming home from school in my brown uniform, fairly unsure of what the towers stood for or even where they were. I was just short of fourteen.

Now watching it as a trainee journalist, its well worn territory. The Freedom Tower awaits, all 1776ft of it (such empty symbolism, so American).

The devastation caused, the thick grey ash and black smoke, the falling debris, the blood and panic is still deeply upsetting. What strikes me now, is the deep polarisation between Western lives and Eastern beliefs, seven years on.

Bush's War on Terror has only exacerbated tensions. Hatred on both sides is still fervent. What happened that day was terrible, innocent lives were taken but what still remains is a deep resentment of the developed west.

Barack Obama is promising change, and I can't help but be swept up by him. America needs to become less isolated, but when many Americans still assume him to be a Muslim and are therefore prejudice against him, (Obama rhymes with Osama! His middle name is Hussein!), regretfully I'm not sure it's his time for the White House.